Business communication

Question1

Communication is usually a two-way complex process that may involve various iterations before achieving mutual understanding. There are basic principles communication principles that should be considered whether one is speaking formally or informally as discussed below

Knowing the audience and topic involved

 The communication process should always be focused on suiting the understanding level of the intended recipient of information.  The details and facts of the information to be relayed should also be considered (Society for Human Resource Management, 2006).

Anticipating objections and presenting a comprehensive picture

One should expect any objections that may arise out of misunderstanding. The communication should, therefore, bring benefits for all the parties involved and evidence such as statistics should be used to support statements (Society for Human Resource Management, 2006).

Communicating a little at a given time while checking whether information is being understood

 This will allow one to pause and ask question to check whether the listeners understand. The listener should then be given an opportunity to ask any questions (Society for Human Resource Management, 2006).

Presenting the information in a number of ways

This involve using different techniques to engage various individuals like visuals or notes given that what works for one reader or listener may fail to work for another(Society for Human Resource Management, 2006).

Developing practical ways of obtaining feedback  

Feedback is the surest way of evaluating the extent to which communication is effective. This involves ways that suits the circumstances and environment in which h the communication process is taking place. Observing, listening, investigating and assessing may some of the ways of obtaining feedback depending on role one plays as a communicator. Such roles involve an assessor, investigator, recipient or a participator.   Actively listening and observing are very important skills in good communication which enables one to avoid misunderstanding, misinterpretation and confusion (Society for Human Resource Management, 2006).

Hence, various business communication strategies should be in place to assist in managing the relationship between various stakeholders.  The strategies should consider whether the communication is focused on the internal or external stakeholder. For the internal communication, there should be consistent, clear and constant communication that will enable developing employee engagement as a strategic goal of building and sustaining effective and internal business relationship. This will mean that internal communication will involve managers who can contribute to engagement of the employees throughout an organization (Carroll, 2015). It will enable the managers to obtain information on the satisfaction of the employees with their job positions and what need to be done to counter any case of dissatisfaction.  This internal communication can be communication between managers and internal stakeholders which will promote a commitment to the firm create a sense of belonging to the organization and awareness in a case of a changing business environment and understand the evolving aims.  Another strategy involves creating two-way communication strategy which is symmetrical which can go a long way in enhancing internal communication (Carroll, 2015). The symmetrical communication will be very important in communication aimed at external stakeholders.  It can serve as a public relation model when it attempts to balance the interests of an organization’s publics with that of its own.  The two way communication is an important strategy that will enable reception of feedback to the between members of the organization and the larger community. An important aspect in these communication strategies involves the selection of an appropriate communication tool. The choice of the right communication tool will be informed by the goal, message and the audience being targeted (Society for Human Resource Management, 2006).

Question 2

A positive workplace culture is one important given that it affects the decision making process and the attitude of the team members in an organization. Positive culture in the workplace built on effective communication and engagement among the managers and all the employees. A commitment to a strategic and effective communication among the team members, the supervisors and the manager is a core to a positive working environment since everyone is engaged and understands why and what achievement is expected of them and why it is necessary for the organization (Salas, 2013). Effective communication ensures that information reaches the intended recipients appropriately to prevent misunderstanding or misinterpretation (Society for Human Resource Management, 2006). In the oil spillage case lack of effective communication led to misinformation so that there was no teamwork in decision making especially on the issue of placing the plug within the aforementioned well.    An effective communication strategy would have allowed all the stakeholders in the drilling of the well to engage through consultation, risk assessment and finding solutions in the issue instead of trading blames. Through engagement, the roles of each party could have been spelt out effectively so that failure on the installed drilling system can be solved through consultations.

Effective communication is an essential part in creation of a positive culture since it brings about sober environment where employees feel comfortable in their opinions and the decisions made. Open communication invites a culture of participation and engagement and sharing of ideas and overall engagement. When a culture allows for employee engagement through teamwork, everyone in the organization benefits (Salas, 2013). If there was open communication among the Transocean , Bp and Halliburton employees would have expressed their perceptions on the risks involved in not placing the necessary plug.  All the parties would have benefited in case the oil spillage had been prevented from occurring through a teamwork engagement enabled by an open communication.

A culture in any organization can serve to integrate team members so that they understand ways of relating with to one another and the working environment. A positive culture offers the members a sense of identity and builds in them a commitment towards specific values and the manner of doing things (Salas, 2013).  Such a culture is built on an effective organizational communication process that forms a part of effective management in the workplace.  It involves instilling the ability to combine force with a diverse group of people with, understanding how to exchange information in an environment that is changing and complex. An effective communication process enables harnessing the members of an organization to their teamwork roles and be engaged to them. In engagement the employees can employ or express themselves cognitively, physically and even emotionally while they are performing their roles in a team (Salas, 2013). Communication can also involve the way a management presents or represent organizational culture such as attitudes, goals and values that portray the organization and team members. Organizations should expect favorable outcomes if its members have been exposed to the right communication in the firm given that communication perception is based on the idea that the reasoning of a person and their perception of the firm impacts on their behavior (Carroll, 2015).

Reference

Carroll, C. E. (2015). The Handbook of Communication and Corporate Reputation. Hoboken: Wiley. 314

Salas, E. (2013). Developing and enhancing teamwork in organizations: Evidence-based best practices and guidelines. 8

Society for Human Resource Management (É. U.). (2006). The essentials of corporate communications and public relations. Boston, Mass: Harvard Business School Press.